Granted, the name of the blog is a marginal knock-off/rip-off of Jeff Smith’s "The Frugal Gourmet." I am aware of that, and thank-you for noticing.
His personal "issues" and culinary critics aside, it was his show that really got me interested in cooking on a daily basis. When I was much younger, I can remember watching Graham Kerr (The Galloping Gourmet) and Julia Child. But as a young adult, it was Jeff’s show on WTTW in Chicago that really caught my attention. This was long before cable had anything like the Food Network.
Was everything that Jeff made great? No. Not by a long shot. (I don't think I'll ever forgive Jeff for that thoroughly revolting skordalia recipe.) But there are a few gems of his that I still make to this day. I will share those as the blog develops.
Other culinary influences are my Mom’s family in France and my grandparents on my Father’s side. I'm still trying to make a fusion Ukrainian/French meal out of those roots.
After having been told a few too many times that I can actually put a decent meal together, I decided to document (and photograph) various dishes that are consistent hits with family and friends, as well as document (and again photograph) my outings into experimentation with various unused recipes.
I have far too many cookbooks. I also have far too many individual recipes that have completely stuffed several three ring binders. Many were printed and never even made. But I had to have printed them for a reason, right? I hope to revisit those and sift through the pile. That could be fun. We’ll see. If anything, it will clean out the upstairs office.
I’ve also been slowly trying to move away from following recipes word for word, and get into a more free form style of cooking. This has its pros and cons.
The one major problem is that my wife will like something and I can never seem to duplicate it. So, I’m caught in a sort of Culinary Catch-22. I’m trying not to go by written recipes, and yet, I will need to write the buggers down if I’m ever to have any hope of recreating something that was liked.
Oh, the tangled, demented world of the home chef!
I hope to share some tasty things with anyone passing through this blog. Welcome again! Thanks for dropping by! Also, feel free to share your thoughts and suggestions in the comments section.
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